Pressure sensing implant

ABSTRACT

A wireless circuit includes a housing having at least one opening, and sensor connected to the housing at the opening. The sensor includes a first layer having a first dimension and a second layer having a second dimension shorter than the first dimension. The second layer may be positioned entirely within the housing and a surface of said first layer may be exposed to an exterior of the housing.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of Ser. No. 14/77,654 filed on Sep.16, 2015 entitled “PRESSURE SENSING IMPLANT,” which is a National StagePhase Application of International Application No. PCT/US2014/030661,filed on Mar. 17, 2014, entitled “PRESSURE SENSING IMPLANT,” whichclaims priority to Provisional Patent Application No. 61/786,793entitled “PRESSURE SENSING IMPLANT,” filed on Mar. 15, 2013.International Application No. PCT/US2014/030661 is also acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/129,725entitled “IMPLANTABLE SENSOR ENCLOSURE WITH THIN SIDEWALLS,” filed onFeb. 21, 2014 now U.S. Pat. No. 9,867,552, which is a National StagePhase Application of International Patent Application No.PCT/US/2012/044998 entitled “IMPLANTABLE SENSOR ENCLOSURE WITH THINSIDEWALLS,” filed on Jun. 29, 2012 which claims priority to ProvisionalPatent Application No. 61/502,982 entitled “IMPLANTABLE SENSOR ENCLOSUREWITH THIN SIDEWALLS,” filed on Jun. 30, 2011, each of which are herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF INVENTION

This application relates to implant packages and more particularly to animplantable sensor enclosure for optimal wireless communication.

BACKGROUND

Implantable wireless sensors are useful in assisting diagnosis andtreatment of many diseases. Examples of wireless sensor readers aredisclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/737,306 and U.S. Pat.No. 8,154,389B2, both entitled Wireless Sensor Reader, which areincorporated by reference herein. Delivery systems for wireless sensorsare disclosed in PCT Patent Application No. PCT/US2011/45583 entitledPressure Sensor, Centering Anchor, Delivery System and Method, which isalso incorporated herein by reference. In particular, there are manyapplications where measuring pressure from within a blood vessel deep ina patient's body is clinically important. For example, measuring thepressure in the heart's pulmonary artery is helpful in optimizingtreatment of congestive heart failure. In this type of application, asensor may need to be implanted 10 to 20 cm beneath the surface of theskin.

Implantable wireless sensors that use radiofrequency (RF) energy forcommunication and/or power have been found to be particularly useful inmedical applications. However, there are many tradeoffs and designconstraints in designing such implantable sensors, such as size, costand manufacturability.

A key challenge in successful commercialization of these implantablewireless sensors is the design tradeoff between implant size and the“link distance”, which is the physical distance between the implant andthe external device communicating with the implant. From a medicalstandpoint, it is desirable for an implant to be as small as possible toallow catheter based delivery from a small incision, implantation at adesired location, and a low risk of thrombosis following implant.However, from a wireless communication standpoint, the smaller theimplant, the shorter the link distance. This distance limitation isdriven primarily by the size of the antenna that can be realized for agiven overall implant size. A larger antenna is better able to absorb RFenergy and transmit RF energy than a smaller antenna. For example, inthe case of wireless communication via inductive coupling, a typicalimplant antenna has the form of a coil of wire. The coil's “axis” is theline that extends normal to the plane of the windings, i.e. the axis isperpendicular to the wire's length. As the area encircled by the coilincreases, the amount of magnetic flux that passes through it generallyincreases and more RF energy is delivered to/received from the implant.This increase in flux through the implant antenna can result in anincrease in link distance. Thus to achieve maximum link distance for agiven implant size, the implant antenna should be of maximal size.

While antenna size is important, other implant architectures may benefitfrom maximizing the size of other internal components. An implantcontaining an energy storage device such as a battery, for example,would enjoy longer battery lifetime with a larger battery. In anotherexample, a drug-eluting implant could hold a larger quantity of thedrug. Other examples will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Moreover, an optimal implantable sensor may be best designed to functionwith a specific device or reader device.

Wireless transmitter and reader devices, such as the wireless reader ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/423,693 entitled “WIRELESS SENSORREADER,” which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in itsentirety, may require a specific implantable sensor to provide optimalfunctionality of the reader/sensor system. An optimal implantable sensorfor such systems may be configured to transduce pressure into a resonantfrequency. The sensor may be a passive sensor with no internal powersource, such as a sensor having an LC resonant tank circuit. The sensormay minimize its total size while maximizing coil area, as described inPCT Patent No. PCT/US2012/044998 entitled “IMPLANTABLE SENSOR ENCLOSUREWITH THIN SIDEWALLS,” which is hereby incorporated by reference hereinin its entirety. The sensor may have a high RF Quality (Q factor), whichis maximized by careful materials selection and device design. Thesensor may be immune to temperature changes, including temperaturechanges during the manufacturing process and in transition between airand in vivo. The sensor may have high sensitivity and good electricalisolation between electrical nodes and surrounding body fluids ortissue. The sensor may be highly stable over time, have good mechanicalstrength, incorporate biocompatible materials, and minimize use offerrite materials.

For an LC type wireless MEMS sensor, overcoming these challengesrequires the design of a small sensor with high resonant quality factor(Q) at low operating frequencies (the human body attenuates wirelessdata signals, with generally more signal attenuation occurring at higherfrequencies above 50 MHz). An additional challenge arises due toregulatory policies and licensed frequency bands for commercial use.With current technology, it is difficult to reliably fabricate anaccurate ultra-miniature implantable wireless pressure sensor with highquality factor at low operating frequencies within a tightly controlledoperating range. To achieve high resonant Q in an LC circuit requiresboth an inductor and a capacitor with high Q. Using multiple turns ofcoils with large cross sectional area conductors is one of the factorsthat improves the Q of an inductor. A high Q capacitor is generallyformed by closely spaced low resistance conductors separated by adielectric material with low dielectric loss.

While an ultra-miniature sensor requires an inductor with high Q toensure reliable wireless signal communication at appropriate distancebetween sensor and external device, a high Q inductor places limitationson overall sensor size. In known LC sensors, the placement and design ofa high Q inductor restricts the location and size of the capacitivesensor. In known implantable pressure sensors, the active capacitanceareas (the areas where capacitance changes with pressure changes) ofcapacitive sensors are realized by large solid area electrodes. Knowncapacitive sensors must reside entirely outside the area defined by aninductor. For example, FIG. 1A shows a sensor 10′ having a capacitor 12′outside of an inductor spiral coil 14. FIG. 1B shows a sensor 10′ havinga capacitor 12′ inside the center of an inductor spiral coil 14. Thecapacitor 12′, however, cannot overlap an inductor spiral coil 14, asshown in FIG. 1C, without significantly reducing the quality factor ofthe LC sensor. Furthermore, placement of the capacitor 12′ near theinner turns of the inductor spiral coil 14 may also significantly reducethe quality factor of the LC sensor. Also, placement of the capacitorelectrodes on the plane of or near the inductor can reduce the qualityfactor of the LC sensor. Thus in known sensors, capacitors are placedadjacent to an inductor, which increases the size of the sensor, orinside the central area of the spiral inductor with significant spacebetween the inner turns of the spiral inductor and the edges of thecapacitor plates, which limits the size of the capacitor and/or the sizeof the inductor.

Known wireless pressure sensors are also limited by having a capacitivesensor that does not have a high Q. In known implantable pressuresensors, capacitive sensors are realized by large solid area electrodes.This capacitance design is not optimal and results in a low qualityfactor capacitance for high frequency alternating currents. Large solidarea electrodes of a capacitor when not positioned away from theinductor result in reduced quality factor of an LC circuit due to eddycurrents in the capacitor electrode when the electrode is subject tohigh frequency alternating currents.

There are further challenges with known sensors to realize a sensor thatoperates within approved frequency ranges for wireless signaltransmission and at the same time experiences minimal signal attenuationthrough the human body. To operate sensors at low frequencies, whichexperience low signal attenuation, requires a large value of capacitanceand large value of inductance. Both inductance and capacitance arelimited by size. A large inductance can be achieved by large spiralturns of a conductor. Large capacitance can be achieved by large areacapacitor electrodes separated by a small gap. If the size of thecapacitor electrodes are limited by the inductor and the size of thesensor, the electrodes must be spaced closer together to achieve highcapacitance. Controllably fabricating electrodes with a small gap withinpractical manufacturing tolerances is challenging and could result in alower breakdown voltage between the electrodes, stiction of theelectrodes, limited pressure operating range, and low yield or highcost.

During the fabrication of MEMS sensors, dimensional tolerances may varyspatially over a wafer and may additionally vary from one wafer toanother. The variation in component dimensions affects the properties ofthe resulting device. In many cases, it is difficult to tightly controlthe capacitance of a sensor within an economical production environment.With known LC sensors, the operating range of the passive sensor cannotbe modified after fabrication of the device as often both the capacitorand the inductor are sealed from the environment. Such designs requireoperation of the devices over larger operating ranges to account formanufacturing tolerances and these ranges may not be approved forcommercial use by regulatory bodies. Other current methods to tune theoperating range of a sensor after fabrication requires on chipcalibration efforts which can increase the size of the sensor and/or thepower consumption of the sensor which reduces the usefulness of thesensor. With current technology, it is difficult to fabricate a smallsensor that can operate in a specified operating range at lowfrequencies. The ability to tune the operating range of a sensor afterfabrication can increase device yields so that producing wirelesssensors within allowable regulated areas is economically feasible.

Another challenge in commercialization of implantable wireless sensorsis the need to protect the sensitive sensor electronics from potentiallycorrosive or damaging fluids of the body. For many implant applications,the sensor may need to record accurate measurements for a period of timeexceeding 7 to 10 years. Small changes in electrical, chemical, ormechanical properties of the implant over this time period can result ininaccurate measurements. To prevent inaccurate measurements, a hermeticenclosure may be required to protect the sensitive electronics of thesensor from the transfer of liquids and gases from the bodilyenvironment.

Hermetic enclosures for implants are typically constructed of metals,glasses, or other ceramics. Metals are malleable and machinable, capableof being constructed into thin walled hermetic enclosures such as thetitanium enclosures of pacemakers. Unfortunately, the use of metals inhermetic enclosures may negatively impact the ability of the sensor tocommunicate wirelessly with an external device, especially whencommunication at low radiofrequencies is desired. While ceramics andglasses are compatible with wireless RF communication, it is difficultto machine ceramics to a thin walled hermetic enclosure. The brittlenessof ceramics prevents the construction of thin wall hermetic enclosuresfrom ceramic materials.

State of the art ceramic machining can produce walls of approximately0.5-0.7 mm thickness. For implants whose length, width, and heightdimensions are typically ones of millimeters, this can represent asignificant reduction in available internal volume for components suchas antennas.

Hermetic enclosures known in the art, particularly those made of ceramicand/or glass materials, do not lend themselves to efficient use oflimited space. Non-metal hermetic enclosures known in the art aretypically manufactured via planar processing technology, such as lowtemperature cofired ceramic processes, laser machining, ultrasonicmachining, Electronic Discharge Machining (EDM), or Micro ElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS) fabrication techniques. These techniques arecapable of processing ceramics and glasses with tight control of featureresolution. However, sidewalls of an implant package made with thesetechniques often require use of a dicing saw or laser to separate theimplant package from the remaining substrate. Due to manufacturingconstraints and the need for mechanical strength, implant packagesidewalls made by these methods are typically 0.3 mm-0.5 mm thick.Alternative manufacturing approaches, such as the molding or machiningof ceramic, are typically limited to minimum sidewalls of 0.5-0.7 mmthick.

An example of a prior art hermetic implant package 10 is shown in FIG. 1. The implant package 10 includes thick sidewalls 12 that limit thespace available for the internal components, in this case implantantenna 14. For example, an implant package of width 4 mm that hassidewalls 0.5 mm thick only has a maximum of 3 mm of width available foran implant antenna. FIG. 1D shows an antenna 14 that is placed into theimplant package from an opening at the top of the package. To completethe implant package, a top layer 16 is connected or bonded to theimplant package and sealed as shown in FIG. 2A. For pressure-sensingimplant packages known in the art, the top layer is typically either acapacitive pressure sensor itself, a thin membrane that is directly partof a sensing electronic circuit, or a thin membrane that communicatespressure from the environment to the inside of the implant package viaan incompressible liquid or gel. Manufacturing techniques known in theart are capable of routinely processing membranes to thicknesses of0.025-0.1 mm. Many variations of the FIG. 1D-2 architecture exist in theprior art, including the method of etching a cavity in half of a housingto create the thin wall on top of the coil, and then bonding the twohousing halves vertically. This is depicted in the sketch of FIG. 2B,where the upper housing half 999 has a cavity etched into it to createthe thin membrane.

Other prior art exemplifies wireless implant architectures of the typeshown in FIG. 1D and FIG. 2 , where the thin pressure sensitive membraneis in a plane that is perpendicular to the coil's axis. U.S. Pat. No.7,574,792 (O'Brien), U.S. Pat. No. 6,939,299 (Petersen), and U.S. Pat.No. 4,026,276 (Chubbuck) all teach implantable pressure sensors withcoil antennas, and hermetic housings with at least one deformablepressure-sensitive wall. In all these cases, the pressure-sensitivewalls of the housings are perpendicular to the coil axis, and the wallslocated outside the coil perimeter are rigid, structural, and relativelythick. In these architectures, total coil area is limited by the needfor a relatively thick structural wall outside the coil perimeter.

To improve implantable wireless sensors, it is desirable to have ahermetic enclosure with thin walls outside the coil antenna perimeter,thus maximizing the internal dimension that most constrains antennasize.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This application relates to hermetically packaged wireless electronicsand more particularly to an implantable sensor design and manufacturingapproach to optimize manufacturability, size, longevity, RFcharacteristics, and overall performance.

In an embodiment, a wireless circuit includes a housing and at least oneantenna coil wound about a coil axis within the housing. The coil axismay be substantially parallel to at least one wall of the housing,wherein the wall parallel to the coil axis is substantially thinner thanother walls of the housing. The housing may be a hermetically sealedhousing.

In an embodiment, the wireless circuit may be manufactured by forming ahousing of a material with at least one open side. Electronics,including an antenna coil, may then be placed into the housing such thatsaid antenna coil's axis is substantially parallel to the plane of atleast one open side. A wall that is substantially thinner than the wallsof the housing may then be bonded to the open side. The wall may behermetically bonded or otherwise bonded as known in the art.

In an embodiment, the wireless circuit may be manufactured by forming ahousing of a material with at least two open sides. Electronics,including an antenna coil, may then be placed into the housing. A sensormay be bonded to one of the open sides to form a wall on one of thesides. The sensor may be substantially thinner than the walls of thehousing. A wall that is substantially thinner than the walls of thehousing may be bonded to another open side. The walls may behermetically bonded or otherwise bonded as known in the art.

In an embodiment, the wireless circuit may comprise a sensor withconductive features. The conductive features may be patterned in a solidarea. The solid area may incorporate slots or otherwise breaks thatresult in a non-continuous solid area. The conductive features maycomprise one or more electrodes of a capacitor, for example a capacitivepressure sensor. A capacitive pressure sensor with non-continuousconductive features over a solid area may be placed near an inductorcoil or on or near an inductor coil to form a wireless circuit withsmall form factor and optimal RF quality factor.

In an embodiment, a circuit may comprise a housing having at least oneopening, and sensor connected to the housing at the opening. The sensormay include a first layer having a first dimension and a second layerhaving a second dimension shorter than the first dimension. The secondlayer may be positioned entirely within the housing and a surface ofsaid first layer may be exposed to an exterior of the housing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein withreference to the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1A illustrate a prior art implant package comprising a capacitorand inductor.

FIG. 1B illustrates another implant package comprising a capacitor andinductor.

FIG. 1C illustrates another implant package comprising a capacitor andinductor.

FIG. 1D illustrates a prior art implant package, not including the finalsealing layer;

FIG. 2A illustrates a typical prior art implant package, including athin sealing layer;

FIG. 2B illustrates a typical prior art implant package, with a cavityetched into part of the housing;

FIG. 3A illustrates the housing portion of a hermetic wireless packageof the present invention;

FIG. 3B illustrates the complete hermetic wireless implant of thepresent invention;

FIG. 3C illustrates a hermetic wireless implant having thin walls bondedto the housing.

FIG. 4A illustrates the housing portion of an alternative embodiment ofthe present invention, with etched cavities and a split housing;

FIG. 4B illustrates the assembly of an alternative embodiment of thepresent invention, with etched cavities and a split housing;

FIG. 4C illustrates the completed implant, for an alternative embodimentof the present invention, with etched cavities and a split housing;

FIG. 5A is an exploded sketch of another alternative embodiment of thepresent invention, with electronics bonded to the top of the housing;

FIG. 5B illustrates the completed alternative embodiment of the presentinvention, with electronics bonded to the top of the housing;

FIG. 6 illustrates another alternative embodiment of the presentinvention, with electronics bonded to the side of the housing;

FIG. 7 illustrates another alternative embodiment of the presentinvention, with electronics contained in a separate housing chamber

FIG. 8 illustrates an example pressure sensor.

FIG. 9 illustrates an example pressure sensor where the base of thepressure sensor has at least one dimension that is longer than the lidof the pressure sensor.

FIG. 10 illustrates an example pressure sensor where the lid of thepressure sensor has at least one dimension that is longer than the baseof the pressure sensor.

FIG. 11 illustrates a sensor electrically connected to an antenna.

FIG. 12 illustrates one method of packaging the sensor into a wirelessimplant.

FIG. 13 illustrates an example housing for packaging a sensor into awireless implant.

FIG. 14 illustrates a method of packaging a sensor into a wirelessimplant, where an antenna coil is inserted into the center cavity of animplant housing.

FIG. 15 illustrates a method of packaging a sensor into a wirelessimplant, where walls are bonded to the sides of an implant housing.

FIG. 16 illustrates a method of packaging a sensor into a wirelessimplant, where electrical connections from a circuit or electricalcomponent inside an implant housing are connected to a sensor or circuitelement exterior the housing.

FIG. 17 illustrates a method of packaging a sensor into a wirelessimplant, where the sensor is bonded to the housing.

FIG. 18 illustrates one method of attaching a sensor to a housing.

FIG. 19 illustrates another method of attaching a sensor to a housing.

FIG. 20 illustrates another method of attaching a sensor to a housing.

FIG. 21 illustrates another method of attaching a sensor to a housing.

FIG. 22 . illustrates a sensor, a housing, and a wall in an explodedview.

FIG. 23 illustrates another method of attaching a sensor and a wall to ahousing.

FIG. 24 illustrates a view of a capacitive pressure sensor including thetop electrode of a capacitive pressure sensor and contact pads to a topelectrode and a bottom electrode (not shown).

FIG. 25 illustrates a view of a bottom electrode of the capacitivepressure sensor of FIG. 24 .

FIG. 26 illustrates a view of a top electrode of a capacitive pressuresensor.

FIG. 27 illustrates a view of a bottom electrode of a capacitivepressure sensor.

FIG. 28 illustrates a cross sectional view of a capacitive pressuresensor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the invention,examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is tobe understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural andfunctional changes may be made without departing from the respectivescope of the invention.

This application relates to implant packages and more particularly to animplantable sensor design and manufacturing approach to optimizemanufacturability, size, longevity, RF characteristics, and overallperformance. To facilitate maximum link distance for a given implantsize, the enclosure should be constructed to maximize antenna coil area,while still providing ample protection.

The implant package may utilize thin membrane materials such as glass,quartz, sapphire, fused silica, alumina, titanium, diamond, or othermaterials known in the art, to increase the space available inside animplant package of a fixed outer size. Whereas in prior art implantpackages the thin membrane is bonded to the top of the implant package,as in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the thin membrane or membranes may be bonded tothe side of the implant package, such that they are in a planesubstantially parallel with the axis of the coil, as in FIG. 3 .

FIGS. 3A-3C show basic assembly steps for a wireless implant package 20that maximizes coil area by its wall arrangement. The implant in theFigure has the long, narrow, rectangular shape of a typicalcardiovascular implant, although the principle applies to any geometry.FIG. 3A illustrates the basic housing 300 in side view (long dimension)and front view (short dimension) cutaway. In an embodiment, thedimension of housing 300 may be generally cuboid and defining a volumetherein. The housing side walls may be of specific dimensions andproportions to each other. For example, the housing may have four walls(‘top’, ‘bottom’, ‘front’, and ‘back’), but two of the long sides may beopen, so that one can look through the housing into the page in the FIG.3A side view. As described herein, the length of the housing side wallsrefers to the longer dimension of the open walls (also corresponding tothe longer dimension of the top and bottom walls of the housing asillustrated in the Side View of FIG. 3A.) The height and width of thehousing refers to the dimensions of the remaining sidewalls or the topand bottom walls as illustrated in the Front view of FIG. 3A. Dimensionsprovided below list the dimensions of the housing in the order of(length×width×height). The length of the housing may be at leasttwo-times greater than the width and height dimensions. By way of anon-limiting example, the dimensions of the housing may be approximately25×3.75×2.25 mm, with walls 0.5 mm thick. Housing 300 may be made of ahermetic, strong, and biocompatible material, such as ceramic. Suchhousings are fabricated with processes well known in the art, includingmicromachining, ultrasonic machining, wet etching, plasma etching, orlaser machining. While examples are made to a cuboid housing, it will beappreciated that other shapes and configurations may be used, such ascylindrical housings, prism-shaped housings, octagonally or hexagonallycross-sectioned housings, or the like. Further, it will be appreciatedthat while a specific dimension, such as a length, may be discussedbelow with respect to the embodiments described herein, the ratios,comparisons, and descriptions set forth may apply to any dimensions,including length, width, height, or any other applicable dimension.

In other embodiments the length of the implant housing may have valuesof 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 mm long. The cross sections may havewidth×height values of 5×3 mm, 4.5×2.25 mm, 3.25×2.25 mm, 2.5×1.75 mm,or 2×1 mm.

In FIG. 3B, an antenna coil 14, also shown in cutaway, is placed intothe housing 300 via the open walls on the long side. Microelectronics301, which may include one or more pressure sensors, may also be placedinside housing 300, inside the region encircled by coil 14, or outsideof this region.

FIG. 3C depicts the final step, in which thin walls 302 are bonded tohousing 300, such as hermetically bonded. It will be appreciated thatthe thin walls 302 may be sealed or bonded in any appropriate manner. Itwill also be appreciated that the concepts herein may apply tonon-hermetic housing applications, such as acute implants. In thesecases, non-hermetic materials and bonding methods known in the art maybe used. As illustrated and described in the examples herein, the thinwalls 302 may be substantially thinner, or include a portion that issubstantially thinner, than the remaining walls of the housing.Non-limiting examples of wall thicknesses of the housing walls and thinwalls 302 are provided below. By orienting the thin walls 302 such thatthey are parallel to the axis 303 of coil 14, the width of coil 14 inthe short dimension (left to right in the front view) is maximized. Inthis way, the implant package can achieve the maximum possible coil looparea within the width constraint imposed on the short dimension. It willbe appreciated that the coil axis 303 refers to the central axis of agenerally spirally wound coil 14, as shown in FIG. 3 . The spirallywound coil 14 may be any appropriate shape, such as circular,rectangular, or any other shape.

The final implant produced by the process of FIG. 3 meets the complexrequirements of medical implants: (i) small cross-sectional area, (ii)non-metal housing, (iii) hermetic sealing, (iv) biocompatibility, and(v) maximum internal volume for a given external volume.

In another embodiment, maximal internal height may be desirable alsowith small cross-sectional area. The implant packaged shown in FIG. 3may also meet these requirements by rotating the housing 90 degrees sothat the thin walls bond to both top and bottom surface of the housingrather than the sides.

In the case where wireless implant 20 contains a pressure sensor,internal electronics 301 may include one or more pressure sensors knownin the art, and thin walls 302 may be flexible membranes whichcommunicate pressure to internal electronics 301 by means of anincompressible fluid or gel that fills the cavity formed by housing 300and thin walls 302. In another embodiment, the thin walls 302 may beflexible membranes which are part of a sensing electronic circuit, thustransducing pressure directly into an electronic signal of a sensingcircuit.

The walls of the housing other than the thin walls 302 may be greaterthan 0.3 mm. By comparison, in an embodiment, by using membranes as thethin sidewalls 302 of the implant package 20 each sidewall may have athickness of less than 0.15 mm. In another embodiment, by usingmembranes as the thin sidewalls 302 of the implant package 20 eachsidewall may have a thickness less than about 0.050 mm. In anotherembodiment, by using membranes as the thin sidewalls 302 of the implantpackage 20 each sidewall may have a thickness of about 0.025 mm. Inanother embodiment, by using membranes as the sidewalls of the implantpackage 302 each sidewall may have a thickness less than about 0.025 mm,such as about 0.020 mm, about 0.015 mm, about 0.010 mm, about 0.005 mm,about 0.001 mm and any sized thickness in between. Thus, the thin walls302 may have one half or less of the thickness of the non-thin walls ofthe housing 20.

In a typical embodiment, thin walls 302 may be made of one or more thinfilm materials such as glass, quartz, fused silica, titanium, silicon,sapphire, diamond, or others. It may be thinned by polishing, etching,or other methods well known in the art. Thin walls 302 may be bonded tohousing 300 by several means known in the art, including laser welding,glass frit bonding, or compression bonding by brazing, soldering, oreutectic bonding, following deposition of a metal braze ring on the twosurfaces.

For bonding technologies that require a metal ring to be depositedaround the perimeter of each diaphragm, on both the diaphragm and matingsurfaces on the housing, the architecture of FIG. 3C provides a furtheradvantage over the prior art. When the metal ring is parallel to theantenna windings, as in prior art FIG. 1 , it may absorb and dissipatesignificant amounts of energy going to and coming from the antenna 14,due to shielding and eddy current formation. However, when the diaphragmbonding rings are arranged perpendicular to the antenna windings as inFIG. 3C, the shielding and eddy current effects are practicallyeliminated.

The thin-walled housing or implant package 20 provides a significantimprovement in the efficient use of space inside an implant package overprior art. By way of a non-limiting example, for a prior art implantpackage having an outer width of about 4 mm, the maximum available widthfor the antenna was approximately 3 mm. By contrast, in a thin-walledimplant package 20 with an outer width of about 4 mm, the availablewidth for the antenna is approximately 3.95 mm. Such an increase inantenna width for a given implant outer size may dramatically increasethe wireless link distance of an implantable wireless sensor. Thisdifference in antenna width of the thin-walled implant package 20 cantranslate into a catheter delivery system that is about 3 Fr sizessmaller for the present invention than for prior art systems. Similarly,if the implant housing is rotated 90 degrees, the thin-walled housingimplant package may provide significantly more room for a tall antenna.

The invention is thus particularly useful in wireless implants that haveone axis longer than the others, which is generally the case forimplants that are intended for placement in blood vessels, or intendedfor delivery through a catheter device. If the ratio of length to widthof such an implant is x, then increasing the coil's width dimension by nmicrons creates more coil area than the same increase in the lengthdimension, by a factor of x. In such wireless implants, one cangenerally maximize coil area by placing the thinnest sidewalls parallelto the coil axis, and perpendicular to the shorter dimension, as in FIG.3C.

It will be further appreciated that the implant architecture can be usedto maximize the size of any internal component, substance, orcombination thereof. These may include, but are not limited to, drugs,steroids, batteries, stimulus electrodes, pacing circuitry, flowsensors, chemical sensors, or other electronics.

It will be further appreciated that although the exemplary embodimentsdepict a rectangular coil, the coil 14 can be generally circular,ovular, rectangular, or can take the form of any polygon that enclosesan area. Additionally, although a rectangular housing is shown in theexemplary embodiment figures, the concept of disposing the thin walls onthe outer periphery of coil 14, parallel to coil axis 303, can begeneralized to any polygonal shape.

The disclosed invention depicted in FIG. 3 may have a further benefitfor pressure sensing implants. Many commonly available chip-scalepressure sensors are well suited for use in wireless implants. However,such pressure sensors generally have small, thin, pressure sensingdiaphragms, on the order of 2 mm diameter or less and thickness of 500nm or less. If such a diaphragm is exposed to living tissue or blood,one or more layers of cells will usually grow on it after a period ofseveral days or weeks. Cell layers such as this are known to stiffen thesensor's diaphragm, decreasing the device's sensitivity. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 3C, the thin sidewalls 302 may serve asflexible pressure diaphragms, which communicate pressure to chip-scalepressure sensors on internal electronics 301 through apressure-communicating medium. Because they are larger in area andgenerally stiffer than the diaphragms of chip scale sensors, the thinsidewalls 302 will not be stiffened significantly by several layers ofcell growth, compared to the smaller diaphragms of the chip-scalesensors. Thus the present invention allows pressure sensor implantdesigners to select from a number of available off-the-shelf or customchip-scale pressure sensors, without having to worry about diaphragmstiffening due to cell growth.

While the thin-walled implant package 20 may be used with RF medicalimplants, the designs set forth herein are useful for any micro deviceor component where a non-metal hermetic enclosure is required and whereit is desirable to minimize sidewall thickness. Examples include, butare not limited to, sensors, actuators, or transponders located in harshchemical environments, in liquid immersion, in high temperature zones(such as engines), or in environments where sterility is critical. Otherexamples include applications where the internal electronics must behermetically housed, but cannot tolerate shielding or eddy currentlosses imposed by metal housings or braze rings. The designs and methodsdescribed herein overcome the many challenges associated with wirelesssensors that use radiofrequency.

There are also numerous variations of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3 .For example, as shown in FIG. 4A, the housing is formed in two pieces401 and 402, each with a cavity formed by one of the micromachiningprocesses known in the art. The location of the cavity is shown as adotted line in the side view, and can be seen in the cutaway. As shownin FIG. 4B, the coil 14, electronics 301, and other internals areinserted into one of the housing pieces 401. As shown in FIG. 4C,housing pieces 401 and 402 are bonded together hermetically by one ofthe methods previously disclosed. Note that in FIGS. 4A-4C, housingpieces 401 and 402 are shown as symmetrical, but asymmetrical pieces mayalso be employed.

FIGS. 5A and 5B depict an embodiment in which the electronics 501 arefabricated as a thin film device by one of the processes known in theart, with FIG. 5A being an exploded view and FIG. 5B showing all partsassembled. In FIGS. 5A and 5B, housing 500 has its long sides open asbefore, but this time its top side is open. Coil 14 is then insertedinto housing 500. The thin film electronics device 501 is connected tocoil 14 by wirebonding, conductive adhesive, or other means known in theart, and electronics 501 are then hermetically bonded to housing 500using one of the aforementioned processes. Electronics 501 now forms thetop surface of the housing. Thin sidewalls 502 are hermetically attachedto housing 500 as before. If the thin electronics 501 contain a pressuresensor, the internal volume of the housing may not need to be filledwith an incompressible fluid, as thin sidewalls 502 do not need tocommunicate pressure. Additionally, it will be appreciated that thesteps of bonding electronics 501, bonding each of thin sidewalls 502, orinserting coil 14, may be done in a different order. The electronics 501may be a single, solid state device, such as a capacitive sensor, or itmay be multiple devices attached to a hermetic substrate such as LTCC.

FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment similar to that of FIG. 5 . Theelectronics 601 are placed on the exterior of housing 600, but this timeon one of the short ends. FIG. 6 depicts hermetic electricalfeedthroughs connecting electronics 601 to coil 14, but a ‘free wire’connection method such as the one depicted in FIGS. 5A and 5B may alsobe employed. As in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the thin sidewalls 302 are notcommunicating pressure and so incompressible liquid fill may not berequired.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment similar to that of FIG. 6 . Here thehousing has two chambers, one for the coil and another for theelectronics (shown here as “Sensor” and “Substrate”). The coil andelectronics connect via a feedthrough that may or may not be hermetic.Thin sidewalls are placed in the usual place on the sides of the coil,and again over the chamber that contains the electronics. If theelectronics does not contain a pressure sensor, the sidewall over theelectronics chamber may be a thicker wall or a thin wall of a stiffermaterial. If the electronics contains a pressure sensor, and if theelectrical feedthrough is sufficiently leak tight, then only the chambercontaining the sensor needs to be filled with incompressible fluid.

The invention disclosed herein is particularly advantageous when thewireless implant is required to be long and narrow, as is typically thecase with cardiovascular implants. With such geometries, any coil widthgained in the short dimension has a dramatic impact on coil area andhence link distance. In other embodiments, it may be advantageous to usethe present invention to increase the height of a coil inside theimplant.

Many of the embodiments disclosed herein may benefit from having thefinal sidewalls attached in a vacuum environment, to prevent internalpressures inside the housing from varying with temperature.Alternatively, the internal volume may be filled with an inert gas tolimit corrosion of the internals.

It will also be appreciated that the implant housing embodimentsdisclosed herein can be made using all thick walls, and thenpost-processing the housing to thin portions of the walls that areparallel to the coil's axis. State of the art post-processingtechnologies such as grinding, polishing, etching, or laser ablation aresome possible means for accomplishing this.

FIG. 8 shows a cross sectional view of an example capacitive pressuresensor 800. While the capacitive pressure sensor 800 shown suggests aseries capacitor design, other configurations of electrode connectionsare possible to create a single parallel plate capacitor design. In oneembodiment the sensor 800 may be formed by bonding a lid wafer 801 to abase wafer 802. In some embodiments, an intermediary layer 803 may beused to bond lid wafer 801 and base wafer 802. In some embodiments, theintermediary layer 803 may be formed from the lid wafer 801 or basewafer 802. In some embodiments, the intermediary layer 803 may beelectrically conducting and may electrically connect a lid electrode 804to an electrical via on the base wafer. The lid wafer 801 includes atleast one lid electrode 804. In one embodiment, the lid wafer includestwo electrodes. In one embodiment, the base wafer 802 includes baseelectrode 805 and a second base electrode 806. Lid electrode 804 andbase wafer electrodes 805 and 806 may be separated by a small gap 810and sealed inside a cavity 811. The gap 810 may be on the order of0.1-10 um, or approximately 1 um. A pressure applied to lid wafer 801may cause the lid electrode 804 to move closer to or further from baseelectrodes 805 and 806 resulting in a change in capacitance of thecapacitive pressure sensor 800. In one embodiment, base electrodes 805and 806 may be a single electrode. Base electrode 805 has an electricalvia 807 that allows electrical contact to the base electrode 805 outsideof the cavity 811. Base electrode 806 has an electrical via 808 thatallows electrical contact to the base electrode 806 outside of thecavity 811. In one embodiment, the electrical vias 807 and 808 passthrough base wafer 802 to the underside of base wafer 802 and may have asurface amenable to wirebonding, soldering, flipchip, or otherelectrical attachment means. In another embodiment, the electrical vias807 and 808 may be accessible outside the perimeter of the base wafer.In one embodiment, a port 809 allows fluid access to cavity 811. Port809 may allow cavity 811 to be at equal pressure to surrounding medium.In one embodiment, lid wafer 801 and base wafer 802 are made of aceramic, such as glass, and electrodes 804, 805, and 806 are made of ametal, such as gold. In one embodiment, electrical vias 807 and 808 aremade of an electrically conducting material, such as copper, nickel,titanium, or highly doped silicon. Such a capacitive pressure sensor 800and derivations thereof may be particularly useful for forming awireless pressure sensor and integrated with an implant housing.

It will be appreciated that the term “wafer,” as used above and herein,is a non-limiting term that could mean wafer, substrate, layer, or othersimilar phrases. It will be further appreciated that the embodiments ofthe invention described herein, as well as housing and wireless implantintegration, may be performed at the die level or wafer scale, or someparts at wafer scale and some parts at die level.

FIG. 9 shows another embodiment of a capacitive pressure sensor 900,where lid wafer 901 may have at least one length that is shorter than alength of base wafer 902. FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of acapacitive pressure sensor 1000, where lid wafer 1001 may have at leastone length that is longer than a length of base wafer 1002. Theconfigurations of pressure sensors 900 and 1000 may allow for animplantable wireless pressure sensor with small cross sectional area. Itshould be appreciate that the lid wafer and base wafer may be ofarbitrary thickness. In some embodiments, lid and base wafer may have athickness from 10 um-1000 um.

FIG. 11 shows a wireless pressure sensor 1100 formed by electricallyconnecting capacitive pressure sensor 1101 to an antenna 1102. Antenna1102 may be comprised of several turns of a coil 1103. A first end 1104of antenna 1102 may be electrically connected to an electrical via 1106that is electrically connected to electrode 1108 inside cavity 1110. Asecond end 1105 of antenna 1102 may be electrically connected to anelectrical via 1107 that is electrically connected to electrode 1109inside cavity 1110. In one embodiment, wireless pressure sensor 1100 isan LC resonant tank.

Wireless pressure sensor 1100 may be attached to a housing to form ahermetically sealed wireless pressure sensor. Some hermetic attachmentmethods may require high temperatures, such as an oven frit process or adirect glass welding process. Other hermetic attachment methods mayemploy use of laser bonds or laser frit bonds to localize heat of thebond so as not to damage sensitive electronics. In one embodiment,capacitive pressure sensor 1101 may be a MEMS pressure sensorconstructed of glass and metal. In another embodiment, the sensor 1101may be constructed of glass, metal, and silicon. In one embodiment, thesensor 1101 may be able to withstand high temperatures, such astemperatures greater than 300 C, or greater than 500 C, without damagingthe sensor 1101. Such a sensor could be amenable to hermetic bonding toa glass housing via an oven frit weld process or a localized laser fritweld process. In one embodiment, the capacitive pressure sensor 1101 maybe able to withstand hermetic bonding temperatures while the coil 1103,bobbin 1111, or other electrical circuitry may not be able to withstandhermetic bonding temperatures. The present invention describes severalmeans of manufacturing an implantable wireless pressure sensor.

FIG. 12 shows an implantable wireless pressure sensor 1200. A wirelesspressure sensor 1201 is inserted into a housing 1202. Part of thewireless pressure sensor 1201 may be bonded to housing 1202. The housingmay have a ledge around the periphery. A variety of bonding methods maybe employed. For an implantable wireless pressure sensor to functionmany years in the body, a hermetic bond is often desired. In oneembodiment, the wireless pressure sensor 1201 may be bonded to thehousing at bond locations 1203 and 1204. The bond may be a laser weld, afrit-laser weld, a frit weld, or other bonds known in the art. Thewireless pressure sensor 1201 may rest on the ledge 1205 or it may bebonded at bond locations 1203 and 1204 and hang suspended over the ledge1205. Bond locations 1203 and 1204 may be positioned at sufficientdistance from electrodes 1212, 1213, 1214, coil 1206, and bobbin 1215such that heat localized at the bond locations 1203 and 1204 does notreach sufficient temperatures to damage other components. Bond locations1203 and 1204 may be optically clear to a laser path to allow for laserbonding at or below bond locations 1203 and 1204 so that wirelesspressure sensor 1201 may be hermetically bonded to housing 1202. Atleast a portion of lid wafer 1216, intermediate layer 1217, and basewafer 1218 may be optically clear to allow laser energy to pass throughwithout heating up the lid wafer 1216, intermediate layer 1217, and basewafer 1218. Laser energy may be focused at the interface of base wafer1218 and housing ledge 1205 to form a hermetic bond. An intermediatelayer may be placed on or near the housing ledge 1205, base wafer 1218or lid wafer 1216 to absorb applied energy and form a hermetic bondbetween the capacitive pressures sensor 1201 and housing 1202.

The antenna 1206 on bobbin 1207 may rest on the inner housing bottom1208 or it may hang suspended over the inner housing bottom 1208. Thecavity 1210 of the wireless pressure sensor 1201 may be vented by port1209 such that cavity 1210 is in fluid communication with cavity 1211 ofthe housing 1202.

FIG. 13 shows a perspective view of a housing 1300 suitable for formingan implantable wireless pressure sensor. Housing 1300 may have a ledge1301 recessed from a top surface 1305. Housing may have a through slotwith open face 1302 on one side and open face 1303 on the opposite side.Housing may have a bottom wall 1304 beneath a top opening 1306.Electronics may be inserted into the housing in a variety of locationsand sequences. A capacitive pressure sensor may be bonded to the topsurface 1305 or ledge 1301. An antenna or other electronics may insertedinto the housing via open face 1302 or open face 1303, or even from topopening 1306. In one embodiment, the housing may also have a slotthrough bottom wall 1304 to allow another opening for electronicsinsertion or thin wall attachment. Walls may be attached to cover openface 1302 or 1303 after electronics are inserted. There are severalmanufacturing approaches to assembling a wireless pressure sensor andsealing it inside a housing.

FIGS. 14-17 illustrate embodiments of forming a wireless pressure sensorin a housing. FIG. 14 illustrates a housing 1400 with a through slot1401 on the housing side. An electronics assembly 1402 with coil ends1403 is inserted in the through slot 1401 to reside in the housing 1400.Coil ends 1403 may be tucked inside the electronics assembly 1402 duringinsertion in through slot 1401. Coil ends 1403 may then be broughtthrough the top slot 1404 in the housing 1400 so that coil ends areaccessible through top slot 1404 of housing 1400. In this way,electronics assembly 1402 and coil ends 1403 are fully inside theperimeter of the housing 1400.

FIG. 15 shows a side walls 1505 attached to the housing 1500. Theelectronics assembly 1502 may be comprised of high temperature resistantceramics or metals amenable for side walls 1505 to be hermeticallyattached to housing 1500 via a high temperature bonding process. Inanother embodiment, electronics assembly 1502 may be comprised ofpolymers or other materials that cannot withstand high temperatures. Inone embodiment, side walls 1505 may be hermetically bonded to housing1500 with a localized heating method, such as laser welding or laserfrit welding along a perimeter of slot 1501 on the housing side surface1506. In one embodiment, after side walls 1505 are bonded, the housing1500 may have hermetic walls on all sides except for top slot 1504.

FIG. 16 shows a capacitive pressure sensor 1607 electrically connectedto coil ends 1603 that pass through top slot 1604. The housing 1600 mayhave a ledge 1608 suitable for resting a bottom surface 1609 ofcapacitive pressure sensor 1607. An intermediary material such as aglass frit, epoxy, or other bonding material may be applied to ledge1608. The ledge 1608 may be along a small section of the perimeter ofthe housing such that the section has sufficient strength to support thecapacitive pressure sensor 1607 and sufficient area for laser assistedor other bonding along the perimeter 1610 and 1611 of the capacitivepressure sensor 1607.

In other embodiments, an intermediate printed circuit board (PCB) may bebonded directly to coil ends 1603 or capacitive pressure sensor 1607 sothat solder bumps may form one or more of the electrical connections. Inanother embodiment, a flex PCB may also be used. A surface mountcapacitor may be added to the PCB or directly to capacitive pressuresensor 1607. In another embodiment, capacitive pressure sensor 1607 tomay be bonded first to housing 1600 prior to insertion of electronicsassembly and attachment of side walls.

FIG. 17 shows capacitive pressure sensor 1707 bonded to housing 1700 atledge 1708. It should be appreciated that capacitive pressure sensor1707 may be bonded at another location of housing 1700 such as the topsurface 1712 of housing 1700. In one embodiment, top surface 1713 ofcapacitive pressure sensor 1707 is flush with top surface 1712 ofhousing 1700. In other embodiments, top surface 1713 of capacitivepressure sensor 1707 may sit below or stand proud above top surface 1712of housing 1700. In one embodiment, localized bonding processes, such aswith light or heat or other means, may be applied along perimeterlocations 1714 and 1715. In one embodiment, bonding along perimeterlocations 1714 and 1715 allows bonding to occur at the bottom surface1709 of capacitive pressure sensor 1707. In one embodiment, laser energyapplied along perimeter locations 1714 and 1715 passes throughcapacitive pressure sensor 1707 at perimeter locations 1710 and 1711such that the bond between capacitive pressure sensor 1707 and housing1700 occurs at the interface of the ledge 1708 of housing 1700 and thebottom surface 1710 of capacitive pressure sensor 1707. In oneembodiment, laser energy may directly bond capacitive sensor 1707 tohousing 1700. In another embodiment, an intermediary layer may be usedto bond capacitive sensor 1707 to housing 1700. In an embodiment, alocalized bonding process may allow for a hermetic seal betweencapacitive pressure sensor 1707 and housing 1700 without damagingelectronics assembly 1702 or electronic elements 1716. A hermeticallysealed wireless sensor 1717 may be manufactured in similar means. Itshould be appreciated that in other embodiments, the wireless sensor mayincorporate sensitive biologic, chemical, optical, or other elements toallow for sensing of a variety of metrics.

FIG. 18 illustrates another means of forming a hermetically sealedcavity 1820 inside a housing 1800 with a capacitive pressure sensor 1807interfacing with the surroundings 1821. In one embodiment, housing 1800may have a ledge 1808 suitable for supporting and/or bonding a portionof capacitive pressure sensor 1807 to housing 1800. It should beappreciated that capacitive pressure sensor 1807 may be bonded to a topsurface of the housing 1800 or another surface of the housing 1800.Capacitive pressure sensor 1807 may be comprised of at least two layers,where a lid wafer 1818 may comprise one layer and a base wafer 1819 maycomprise a second layer. Lid wafer 1818 may have at least one dimensionsmaller than a dimension of base wafer 1819. Lid wafer 1818 may have afirst surface 1822 exposed to the surroundings 1821 and a second surface1823 exposed to a first surface 1824 of the base wafer 1819. The basewafer 1819 may have a second surface 1825 exposed to the cavity 1820 inthe interior of housing 1800. Electronics, metals, or other sensingelements may reside in a location between second surface 1823 of lidwafer 1818 and first surface 1824 of base wafer 1819. The perimeter oflid wafer 1818 may be hermetically bonded to base wafer 1819. Electricalvias through the base wafer 1819 may provide electrical connection tothe cavity 1820 in the interior of housing 1800 with electrical featureson the first surface 1824 of base wafer 1819 or with electrical featureson the second surface 1823 of lid wafer 1818. The electronic elementsmay all reside in hermetic seals. In an embodiment, an antenna mayreside inside the cavity 1820 of housing 1800 and electrically connectto capacitive pressure sensor 1807 to form a hermetically sealedwireless pressure sensor.

FIG. 19 illustrates a similar embodiment of forming a hermeticallysealed cavity 1920 inside a housing 1900 with a capacitive pressuresensor 1907 interfacing with the surroundings 1921. In the embodimentshown, lid wafer 1918 may be thinner than base wafer 1919. It should beappreciated that a variety of thicknesses may be utilized for lid wafer1918 and base wafer 1919 such that wafers 1918 and 1919 are of equal ordifferent thickness. In one embodiment, a first surface 1922 of lidwafer 1918 may sit flush with a top surface of housing 1900. In oneembodiment, at least a portion of the perimeter of base wafer 1919 isbonded to the housing 1900 along a ledge 1908, where a bond is formed atthe second surface 1925 of base wafer 1919 and a surface of the housing1900. In an embodiment, an antenna may reside inside the cavity 1920 ofhousing 1900 and electrically connect to capacitive pressure sensor 1907to form a hermetically sealed wireless pressure sensor.

FIG. 20 illustrates another embodiment of forming a hermetically sealedcavity 2020 inside a housing 2000 with a capacitive pressure sensor 2007interfacing with the surroundings 2021. In one embodiment, base wafer2019 is hermetically sealed inside the cavity 2020 of housing 2000. Inan embodiment, lid wafer 2018 may be comprised of a glass material andbase wafer 2019 may be comprised of a glass material or silicon. Thesilicon may be of high resistivity, such as float zone silicon. Thefirst surface 2022 of the lid wafer 2018 may sit flush with the topsurface of housing 2000, recessed below, or stand proud above. Thecapacitive pressure sensor 2007 may be electrically connected toelements inside the cavity 2020 by electrical connections at the secondsurface 2023 of the lid wafer 2018 or by electrical connections at thesecond surface 2025 of the base wafer 2019. In an embodiment, an antennamay reside inside the cavity 2020 of housing 2000 and electricallyconnect to capacitive pressure sensor 2007 to form a hermetically sealedwireless pressure sensor.

FIG. 21 illustrates another embodiment of forming a hermetically sealedcavity 2021 inside a housing 2100 with a capacitive pressure sensor 2107interfacing with the surroundings 2121. In this embodiment, portions ofthe second surface 2123 along the perimeter of lid wafer 2118 are bondedto the housing 2100. Base wafer 2119 may rest on a ledge 2108 in housing2100 or base wafer 2119 may be suspended above ledge 2108. In anembodiment, an antenna may reside inside the cavity 2120 of housing 2100and electrically connect to capacitive pressure sensor 2107 to form ahermetically sealed wireless pressure sensor.

FIGS. 22 and 23 illustrate another embodiment of forming a hermeticallysealed cavity inside a housing with a capacitive pressure sensorinterfacing with the surroundings. FIG. 22 shows an exploded crosssectional view of such an embodiment whereas FIG. 23 shows an assembledcross sectional view of such an embodiment. The housing 2200 may have athrough slot from top to bottom. The housing 2200 may have thinsidewalls 2226 or the sidewalls 2226 may be initially thick and latermade thin by post-processing the housing 2200. State of the artpost-processing technologies such as grinding, polishing, etching, orlaser ablation are some possible means for accomplishing this. To form ahermetically sealed cavity with housing 2200, in one embodiment acapacitive pressure sensor 2207 may be bonded to a top surface ofhousing 2200 and a wall 2222 may be bonded to a bottom surface ofhousing 2200. In one embodiment, a second surface 2223 of capacitive lidwafer 2218 is bonded to a top surface 2227 of housing 2200. A firstsurface 2229 of wall 2222 is bonded to a bottom surface 2228 of housing2200.

In one embodiment, capacitive pressure sensor 2207 is bonded to housing2200 with a high temperature process. In one embodiment, an electronicsassembly may be inserted through opening in bottom of housing to attachto capacitive pressure sensor 2207 prior to wall 2222 being bonded tohousing 2200. In one embodiment, wall 2222 may be bonded to housing 2200using a localized bonding method to avoid damaging electronics insidehousing 2200.

FIG. 23 shows a hermetically sealed housing 2300 with capacitivepressure sensor 2307 at one surface of the housing 2300 and a wall 2322at another surface of the housing. Such a manufacturing approach may beamenable to maximizing internal volume of a hermetically sealed cavityfor a wireless pressure sensor. Lid wafer 2318 and wall 2322 may be madethin, such as having a thickness from 25 to 250 microns. Base wafer 2319may also be made thin, and may have a width or length dimension thatallows room for electronics in the space 2331 between base wafer 2319and side wall 2326 of housing 2300. For example, space 2331 may besufficient to allow turns of a coil antenna to be stacked verticallyfrom the first surface 2329 of wall 2322 up to the second surface 2323of lid wafer 2318.

FIGS. 24-26 illustrate a capacitive pressure sensor suitable for use inthe implantable sensor configuration shown in FIGS. 22 and 23 . FIG. 24shows a second surface 2423 of lid wafer 2418. A first electrode 2405and a second electrode 2406 are on the second surface 2423. A bond line2450 around the electrodes is shown. When the bond line is bonded toanother surface, the electrodes can be hermetically sealed or otherwisesealed inside the bond line 2450. Electrical vias 2407 and 2408 may passunderneath bond line 2450 to allow electrical contact to electrodes 2405and 2406 on second surface 2423 of lid wafer 2418. While the presentembodiment shows two electrodes, it should be appreciated that one ormore electrodes may be formed on lid wafer 2418.

FIG. 25 shows a first surface 2524 of base wafer 2519. An electrode 2504is on the first surface 2524 of base wafer 2519. The electrode 2504 maybe fully contained within bondline 2550. Base wafer 2519 may have atleast one length dimension smaller than lid wafer 2418. FIG. 26 showslid wafer 2618 bonded to base wafer 2619. Second surface 2623 of lidwafer 2618 may be bonded to first surface 2624 of base wafer 2619.Electrical vias 2607 and 2608 may be accessible on the second surface2623 of lid wafer 2618 while electrodes may be located within a bondline in between lid wafer 2618 and base wafer 2619. It will beappreciated that direct electrical contact may be made between lid wafer2618 and base wafer 2619 so that electrical vias 2607 may provide directelectrical contact to elements on the base wafer 2619. Such aconfiguration described in FIGS. 24-26 would form a series capacitivepressure sensor that may be attached to an electronics assembly withcoil and integrated into a hermetically packaged housing to form ahermetically sealed wireless pressure sensor. In other embodiments, asingle parallel plate capacitive pressure sensor could be formed in asimilar manner.

The electrode layout shown in FIGS. 24 and 25 has advantages over priorart electrode designs of large area solid plate electrodes. Large solidarea electrodes of a capacitor when not positioned away from theinductor result in reduced quality factor of an LC circuit due to eddycurrents in the capacitor electrode when the electrode is subject tohigh frequency alternating currents. The electrode layout shown in FIGS.24 and 25 is comprised of conductive features over a solid area thatincorporate slots or otherwise breaks that result in a non-continuoussolid area. The solid area is broken into several narrow rectangularareas 2451 which are connected with thin a trace 2452. Such an electrodedesign can provide sufficient capacitance in a circuit yet is optimallydesign to present eddy currents which could reduce the quality factor ofa wireless circuit.

FIGS. 27 and 28 show another configuration of capacitor electrodes tooptimize quality factor of a wireless circuit. In another embodiment,the electrodes may be configurable. FIG. 27 shows a view of aconfigurable capacitor electrode. Electrical connections may be appliedat the underside of the wafer to select which electrode areas are partof the circuit capacitance. FIG. 28 shows a view of a fixed capacitorelectrode.

FIG. 27 is a view of a capacitive pressure sensor 20′ with aconfigurable capacitor electrode 22. The electrode 22 is patterned in aspecific configuration so as to reduce and effectively eliminateelectrical eddy currents that may arise when the sensor is resonating athigh frequency. Reducing electrical eddy currents in the capacitorelectrodes increases the quality factor of the LC sensor. The patternedconfigurable electrode 22 thus provides for a high quality factor LCsensor in a compact configuration. The configurable electrode 22includes rectangular patterns 24 and 26 that are spaced apart by adistance 28. The rectangular patterns 24 and 26 are electricallyconnected by a central member 30. In one embodiment, the rectangularpatterns 24 and 26 can be 0.1 to 1 mm tall and 0.1 to 1 mm wide, thedistance 28 can be 0.01 to 0.1 mm, and the central member 30 can be 0.1to 1 mm tall and 0.01 to 0.1 mm wide. Many rectangular patterns 24 and26 can be electrically connected to form a large area capacitorelectrode 22. While rectangular patterns have been described, a varietyof shapes and sizes may be utilized.

The capacitive pressure sensor 20′ may optionally have electricallyconducting areas that are not initially electrically connected to thetop capacitor electrode 22. A gap 32 initially separates configurableelectrode 22 from additional conducting areas 34. In one embodiment, aconducting material may be deposited in gap 32 to electrically connecttop electrode 22 to additional conducting area 34. In anotherembodiment, thru wafer vias and contacts on the backside of a wafer maybe connected to or not connected to select additional conducting areasto add to the electrical circuit. This configurability allows tuning ofboth fixed and variable capacitance in the circuit after sensorfabrication. By electrically connecting the additional conducting areas34 to the configurable electrode 22, the area of the configurableelectrode 22 is increased in a controllable manner.

By modifying the configurable electrode 22, it is possible to change thecapacitance of the capacitive pressure sensor 20′ when the sensor 20′has an appropriately designed fixed capacitor electrode 40 (see FIG. 28). FIG. 28 shows a top view of the fixed capacitor electrode 40 of thecapacitive pressure sensor 20′. The fixed electrode 40 is patterned in aspecific configuration so as to reduce and effectively eliminateelectrical eddy currents that may arise when the sensor is resonating athigh frequency. Reducing electrical eddy currents in the capacitorelectrodes increases the quality factor of the LC sensor. The patternedfixed electrode 40 thus provides for a high quality factor LC sensor ina compact configuration. The fixed electrode 40 can include patterns,such as rectangular patterns 42 and 44 that are spaced apart by adistance 46. The rectangular patterns 42 and 44 are electricallyconnected by a central member 48. Additional rectangular patterns 50 areelectrically connected to rectangular patterns 42 and 44 by a centralmember 52. As shown in FIG. 15 , the fixed electrode 40 includes severalpatterns that are all initially electrically connected. Due to thisfixed electrode 40 configuration, when the gap 32 on top electrode 22 isfilled with electrically conducting material to connect configurableelectrode 22 to additional conducting area 34, the total capacitance ofcapacitive pressure sensor 20′ is increased.

Optionally, an electrically conducting trace 54 connects the fixedelectrode 40 to a probe pad 36 on the exterior surface of the capacitivepressure sensor 20′. A probe pad 38 on the exterior surface of thecapacitive pressure sensor 20′ connects to the configurable electrode22. The probe pads 36 and 38 may be used to connect other circuitelements to the capacitive pressure sensor 20′.

It should be appreciated that a variety of sensors, not just pressuresensors, may be described by the embodiments of the present invention.

In all embodiments, the external housing may be surface treated with abiocompatible material to limit clot formation, control cell growth, orimprove lubricity. Such materials may include heparin, silicone,parylene, cell tissue monolayers, or other coatings well known to thoseof ordinary skill in the art. Other materials may be applied or coatedonto the housing to improve overall shape for flow dynamics, improveddeliverability, or other features. Additional mechanical features may beattached to the housing to facilitate implantation in a desired locationin the body. Many such features are disclosed in PCT Patent ApplicationNo. PCT/US2011/45583 entitled Pressure Sensor, Centering Anchor,Delivery System and Method, which is also incorporated herein byreference.

While the apparatus and method of subject invention have been shown anddescribed with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in theart will readily appreciate that changes and/or modifications may bemade thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the subjectinvention.

Having thus described the invention, we claim:
 1. A method of making acircuit comprising: providing a housing that defines a cavity and anopening; positioning at least one electrode on a lid wafer, wherein saidlid wafer includes a first surface and an opposite second surfacewherein said at least one electrode is positioned on said secondsurface; positioning at least one electrode on a base wafer, whereinsaid base wafer includes a first surface and an opposite second surfacewherein said at least one electrode is positioned on said first surface;bonding a portion of said first surface of said base wafer to saidsecond surface of said lid wafer to form said sensor; and inserting atleast one electronic assembly within said cavity of said housing;bonding said sensor to said opening of said housing wherein said basewafer is positioned entirely within said cavity defined by said housingwherein the step of bonding said sensor to said opening of said housingis performed prior to inserting at least one electronic assembly withinsaid cavity of said housing.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said atleast one electrode on said second surface of said lid wafer includesslots or otherwise breaks that result in a non-continuous solid area forpreventing the formation of eddy currents during use of the sensor. 3.The method of claim 1 further comprising attaching side walls to saidhousing to form a hermetic seal in said housing.
 4. The method of claim1, wherein said electronic assembly are inserted into said housingthrough an open face or slot wherein said open face or slot ispositioned along a side of the housing.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein said housing includes a ledge around a periphery of saidopening.
 6. The method of claim 1 further comprising tuning said circuitof the at least one electronic assembly within said cavity of saidhousing after bonding said sensor to said opening of said housing. 7.The method of claim 1, wherein the step of bonding said sensor to saidopening of said housing is performed by a frit process or a direct glasswelding process.
 8. A method of making a circuit comprising: providing ahousing that defines a cavity and an opening; positioning at least oneelectrode on a lid wafer, wherein said lid wafer includes a firstsurface and an opposite second surface wherein said at least oneelectrode is positioned on said second surface; positioning at least oneelectrode on a base wafer, wherein said base wafer includes a firstsurface and an opposite second surface wherein said at least oneelectrode is positioned on said first surface; bonding a portion of saidfirst surface of said base wafer to said second surface of said lidwafer to form said sensor; inserting at least one electronic assemblywithin said cavity of said housing; bonding said sensor to said openingof said housing wherein said base wafer is positioned entirely withinsaid cavity defined by said housing; and tuning said circuit of the atleast one electronic assembly within said cavity of said housing afterbonding said sensor to said opening of said housing.
 9. A method ofmaking a circuit comprising: providing a housing that defines a cavityand an opening; positioning at least one capacitive plate on a lidwafer, wherein said lid wafer includes a first surface and an oppositesecond surface wherein said at least one electrode is positioned on saidsecond surface; positioning at least one capacitive plate on a basewafer, wherein said base wafer includes a first surface and an oppositesecond surface wherein said at least one capacitive plate is positionedon said first surface; bonding a portion of said first surface of saidbase wafer to said second surface of said lid wafer to form said sensor;inserting at least one electronic assembly within said cavity of saidhousing; and bonding said sensor to said opening of said housing whereinsaid base wafer is positioned entirely within said cavity defined bysaid housing.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of bondingsaid sensor to said opening of said housing is performed prior toinserting at least one electronic assembly within said cavity of saidhousing.
 11. The method of claim 9, wherein said at least one capacitiveplate on said second surface of said lid wafer includes slots orotherwise breaks that result in a non-continuous solid area forpreventing the formation of eddy currents during use of the sensor. 12.The method of claim 9 further comprising attaching side walls to saidhousing to form a hermetic seal in said housing.
 13. The method of claim9, wherein said electronic assembly is inserted into said housingthrough an open face or slot wherein said open face or slot ispositioned along a side of the housing.
 14. The method of claim 9,wherein said housing includes a ledge around a periphery of saidopening.
 15. The method of claim 9 further comprising tuning saidcircuit of the at least one electronic assembly within said cavity ofsaid housing after bonding said sensor to said opening of said housing.16. The method of claim 9, wherein the step of bonding said sensor tosaid opening of said housing is performed by a frit process or a directglass welding process.